Evan Pruitt

Evan S. Pruitt is an Assistant Professor of Architecture and serves as the Associate Director of the Master of Architecture (M.Arch) and the Master of Architecture and Design Research (MS.ADR) degree programs in the College of Architecture and the Built Environment. Prior to joining Jefferson faculty, Evan taught studio design courses at UC Berkeley, San Jose State University and California College of the Arts (CCA).

Her work as a director is driven by increasing access to architectural education through curriculum design and programming, as well as critically considering the role of academia within the arc of practice. Additionally, through her advising, she embraces the complexities that often face graduate students and recognizes that unique pathways contribute to the vibrancy of the not only the program, but also a student’s future impact on the field. 

While teaching, Evan emphasizes a design process that is centered on empathy, rigor, and impact. Through that lens, students are encouraged to investigate and propose spatial solutions with a keen understanding of people, place and program.  

Evan’s academic interest is in the intersection of architecture, urban design and public health. Her M.Arch thesis investigated the potential for the built environment to serve an active role in the management of a global pandemic. In collaboration with a Stanford University MD/PhD, she also developed a cross-disciplinary studio design course that explored the bio-chemical systems and representations.

In addition to teaching, Evan has practiced in Chile, California, and Philadelphia. Casa Coya, a home she designed in collaboration with OWAR Arquitectos in the Cachapoal Valley, has received numerous awards and was selected by the Chilean Cultural and Arts Commission to represent the country at the 2010 Venice Biennale. Upon moving to Philadelphia in 2013, Evan founded a boutique design practice dedicated to incisive and innovative design interventions that fortify the potential for historic structures to support the patterns of contemporary life.